Priceless time – The UHNWI's most precious possession: implications for international marketing theory and practice

Abstract

PurposeTraditionally, international luxury marketing highlights possible disparities of cultural and value perception. The context-specific nature of traditional international luxury marketing, which ranges from educational and cultural to financial and offering-based variations, delivers little guidance to managers in the field regarding how to cater best to their highest target segment. The study aims to exemplify the relevance of global consumer culture (GCC) theory for the ultra-high-net-worth-individual (UHNWI) context. The authors' research on UHNWIs maps the DNA, so to speak, of the UHNWI customer experience (CX) by determining what drives UHNWI purchasing behavior independent of background – in other words, what matters most to this exclusive consumer segment.Design/methodology/approachInterviewing 15 UHNWIs using a means-end approach and incorporating the emerging consensus technique (ECT), the authors explored the CX of UHNWIs leading to their purchasing decisions.FindingsThe authors' analysis reveals the three main constituents of the UHNWI CX: the value of time, expectation mismanagement and the utilitarian nature of luxury. The findings highlight that UHNWIs see traditional luxury as a necessity rather than a luxury and value different factors, such as time, much more highly. The findings highlight the UHNWI homogenous nature, connecting GCC to purchasing behavior.Practical implicationsThe authors' study delivers empirical evidence of what matters most to the UHNWI segment and drives their purchasing behavior. The authors are questioning existing luxury segmentation strategies and lay out a clear guidance on how to design and deliver effective and efficient marketing, sales and communications strategies for the elusive UHNWI segment. The research highlights that it is the experience and the three main dimensions, namely expectation mismanagement, luxury as a utility and the value of time. Following UHNWI CX DNA framework will allow luxury companies to build their marketing and client acquisition efforts on a solid understanding of what matters most to the UHNWI target segment.Originality/valueThe study highlights the commonalities of UHNWIs in terms of what matters most to them. Based on this, the authors develop a UHNWI CX DNA. The authors propose that traditional context-specific differences upheld by international marketing researchers might not apply to the UHNWI segment. The authors deliver evidence that UHNWI are an excellent example of the applicability of GCC theory. The only difference in perception the authors noticed was between CX evaluations of self-made UHNWIs and those who inherited their wealth in an otherwise homogenous segment.

Come fly with me: exploring the private aviation customer experience (PAX)

“…We encourage researchers to explore more hedonicoriented setting of the UHNWI, such as fine spirits, art collection, jewelry and watches. Moreover, we believe it will be fruitful to determine if the experiences of UHNWI are indeed homogeneous in nature, as suggested by Klaus et al (2021). We believe it will also be beneficial to use theories from different fields then marketing, such as social penetration theory, to explain UHNWI's unique experience preferences.…”

How is Brand Loyalty Influenced by Brand Association of Reference Groups and Advertisement Informativeness Through Self-Brand Connection?

“…Several studies (Escalas & Bettman, 2005;Khalifa & Shukla, 2021;Fazli-Salehi et al, 2022;Shin et al, 2022) have reported a strong congruency in brand usage and identification of the brand user with a reference group. For example, Rolls Royce has been associated with the ultra-rich segment of society for showcasing and flaunting high-status symbols (Klaus et al, 2022;Mrad et al, 2022). In a recent study by Mrad et al (2022) on expensive luxury car brands, it was revealed that the major reason for purchases of high-end luxury car brands by consumers is to showcase their self-identity and get identified among the elite section of society.…”

The role of advertising, distribution intensity and store image in achieving global brand loyalty in an emerging market

“…Consequently, scholars have increasingly explored why global brands are preferred or how global consumer culture influences purchasing (e.g. Czarnecka and Schivinski, 2019;Klaus et al, 2021). Recent global economic and political issues, however, have negatively affected the global integration progress (Liu et al, 2021;Steenkamp, 2019b) and global brands' future prospects (He and Wang, 2015), especially in Asian markets due to, for example, the global economic impact of COVID-19 (Singh et al, 2021).…”

“…Consequently, scholars have increasingly explored why global brands are preferred or how global consumer culture influences purchasing (e.g. Czarnecka and Schivinski, 2019; Klaus et al. , 2021).…”